Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As National Diabetes Awareness Month 2018 comes to a close, I would like to take this opportunity to commend and recognise a constituent in my electorate of Forde, Josie Hingst, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 5. I first had the pleasure of meeting Josie at St Joseph's Tobruk Memorial School in Beenleigh when she was only in grade 5. Josie, now 17, has just graduated from Calvary Christian College and has been working as an ambassador for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, in my electorate, for the last few years, and she has done an outstanding job. Her mother Lisa is also a JDRF advocate, providing support, resources, education and a helping hand to parents of children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I know they have also taken the opportunity to visit Parliament House on several occasions. Another local I would like to recognise is Melinda Hartley, the proud mother of twins, Zephaniah and Charlotte, who has also been heavily involved in the local community this year as an advocate for JDRF in my electorate but also more widely around the Logan area.

The news last week that we funded three glucose monitoring devices for an additional 37,000 eligible Australians has been very well received by those advocates. Both Lisa and Melinda are only able to afford the continuous glucose monitoring devices for their kids as a result of the subsidy, and I'm sure many others will also benefit. (Time expired)